Present Loves Past

We can all agree that grandparents are special. You are of them + they paved the way for you. (D&C 2:2 And ^ahe shall plant in the hearts of the children the ^bpromises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers.)

It would mean a lot to me to visit my great-grandmother's birthplace, Holland, and our great-grandfather's birthplace, Norway. There's something about the land a person was born to, isn't there? Like fingering the handiwork of someone who is gone, I would love to walk the roads, touch the headstones, and put some pieces of their lives together, just to hold them close and remember. I feel like I am important to them, and that discovering who they were is knowing who they are, those family that are rooting for me and made choices that put me here in this beautiful life. My patriarchal blessing says that, did you know? That they would live in such a way so that I could find the gospel, and in return, I would find them out. Well, I'm going to need a passport for that.

I would loved to see the Northern Lights...as long as my shack had a roaring fire and plenty of soup. And a book.

Facts about Norway
-The Kingdom of Norway is headed by a democratic president but there is also a well-respected modern monarchy, with Crown Prince Sverre Magnus being one of the newest to join the Royal House.
-Population 4.9 million. There are more Norwegian decedents in America than there are in Norway!
-The official religion in Norway is Protestant Christianity.
Christianity in Norway goes back to the Vikings, and the famous Norwegian King Olav the Holy who helped Christianize the country.
-Food stores are not allowed to stay open on Sundays, but petrol stations and kiosks selling groceries are.
-People often used names of the braves for their babies. Names for girls such as  Modgunn, which means ”brave in battle”,  Nanfrid which means ”brave and beautiful”, Anna, which means ”the merciful”, and Rigmor which means ”brave and strong”. Names of the braves for boys are Hermod, a brave warrior, and a messenger of God, Nandor, ”brave as the god Tor”, Tormod, ”Folke” means ”chief” or ”brave leader”, Hjalte also means, ”a hero, a brave giant”, and the name Eimod means ”always brave”, the name Bernhard, or Bernt, means ”brave like a bear”. So now you can name your kids brave names, no excuses.
-Norwegians love frozen pizza. The Grandiosa frozen pizza is unofficially named as the Norwegian national dish and each year Norwegians consume 20 million Grandiosa pizzas in addition to all the other frozen pizza brands on the market.
- Manners. Norwegians are by some considered to be quite rude and impolite. But this is a misunderstanding. In Norway it’s not considered rude to bump into someone at the supermarket and not apologize. Equally it’s not considered rude not to smile back at other people on the street or on public transportation, nor to say thank you.
-Roller skis. Because the winters can be quite cold and snowy in Norway, many Norwegians are passionate skiers. Cross country skiing is considered a national sport both among the old and the young. Some people take it one step further and buy roller skis, so that they can ski even in the summertime. Seeing people roller skiing along the roads in Norway in the summer months is quite a normal sight.
-TV Licence. People that own a TV have to pay a yearly licence fee of approximately US $300.
-National self esteem. Most Norwegians love to talk about Norway to foreigners, and anyone who don't agree with them that Norway is a beautiful country are considered to be either weird or slow or a combination of both.

  . . . . . .

By bike?

Or by boat? (This is long and uneventful, but very relaxing. Just keep a hot drink in hand, put your feet up, and pretend it is your boat ride.)

Facts about Holland
 -The Netherlands in its entirety is often referred to as Holland, , although North  and South Holland  are actually only two of its twelve provinces.
-The capital city, Amsterdam, is built entirely on 100-year old wooden piles to keep the homes from sinking into the soft ground.
-Tulips have become the symbol of Holland and it is a primary source for a variety of flowers world wide.
-There are over 16 million bicycles in use, almost one for every citizen. When you register a car, you get three licenses, one for the front, one for the back, and one for your bike rack.
-Potato and Cheese is the prime ingredient for most Dutch cuisines.
-There are as many as 300 castles open to the general public.

 -Some people still wear clogs and dress in the old milk maid outfits. Of course this isn't everyday people walking down the street on the way to work but older more traditional communities in less touristy towns.
-The Dutch built the windmills for corn milling, saw milling, and land drainage. Dutch windmills are quite primitive; they use canvas sails and were adjusted with a hand crank. Nowadays the windmills are used mainly for tourist attractions.
-Madurodam is one of the famous tourist sites located in the Hague. It is basically a miniature Holland. If the tourists missed anything while sightseeing, they can make up for it by going to Madurodam and seeing all the places they missed. Taking about 2 hours to complete the tour, it is a great place for kids and adults, because it is very entertaining. Sweet.